That Day
by GrissleMcThornbody
Summary: A collection of short stories and vignettes surrounding the Asakura family and their bonds.
1. Which Came But Once a Year

There was the light sound of water trickling on stone.

Anna Asakura sat cross-legged on the floor of the dance studio which served as her training ground for those who came to her to learn the ways of the Itako. In front of her sat her three most advance disciples, also cross-legged.

This meditation period was a scared part of her teachings meant to clear the mind of all negativity, and it would have helped Anna relieve her worries if it hadn't been that day in particular. Instead of the minutes drifting by as unnoticeably as the breeze, each second was hard for the woman to take. Her brows were tensed and were beginning to give her a headache.

Against her practices, Anna peeked an eye open to study her students. Their faces held such delicate grace that she became even more acutely aware that she was not in the right state of mind. She waited a few moments before clearing her throat and standing.

"That will be all for today," she said.

Her students stared up at her with wide eyes as she glided across the room to the compartment where their shoes were kept. She silently slipped on her sandals, and the girls began chattering amongst themselves.

Anna let out a sigh.

It had been four years since she had moved to Los Angeles and begun teaching her practice to this younger generation. She would like to be more selective about whom she took in, but she had to pay the bills. If she didn't bring home a good paycheck each month there was no guarantee of making rent; her husband's job basically cost as much as it earned.

There was light tap on her shoulder, and Anna looked down into the blue eyes of her most advanced student.

"Are you alright Mistress Anna?" the girl asked.

Anna gave a misty smile to the tan girl.

"Yes Alumi," Anna said. "Thank you."

The girl grinned, quickly slipped on her shoes, and ran out the door. The other girls ran after her yelling their good-bye's to their teacher. Anna turned out the lights before following them and locking the door.

As Anna walked down the streets of L.A. her dress and hair billowed about her. Many women around her were holding onto their neatly styled hair and brand name jackets, but the Itako was not a woman who worried herself about those things. She pushed her way through the wind to a white Beetle with an ad for her psychic services painted on its side. She hopped in and tore down the road to LAX.

While she rode through the lanes of traffic, Anna went through a mental checklist of her week's schedule. First there was going to the airport to pick up her husband, which she was doing at the moment. Then the next day she was going to meet with a high profile client about a recently deceased relative. The day after that was special training for Alumi and her general class.

Anna's vision started to blur. It was that day, and a part of her wished that she could just forget it.

When she arrived at the airport, her husband, Yoh, was waiting for her by the curb, wearing a set of head phones and sitting on his large duffle bag. He gave her a wistful smile and a quick peck as he climbed into the car.

"How was your day?" he asked her, once they were back on the road.

"It was fine," Anna replied. "As good as it could be."

They drove on in silence for a few minutes. Yoh was looking out the window, relaxed as always, though his eyes carried a hint of solemn understanding. Then he turned to her.

"You were regretting it weren't you," he said finally.

"I don't regret any of my decisions," she said, as she prepared to merge lanes.

"Ok," Yoh whispered, returning his gaze to the window.

Anna wiped her eyes, quickly. Sometimes she really hated how perceptive her spouse was when it came to her emotions. Even when she lied to him, she knew he could tell.

"It was necessary," she stated firmly. "Things are best this way."

"You're right," he said.

Her eyes were stinging, but she kept her gaze fixed firmly on the road. Rush hour traffic was horrible. If it wasn't the day it was, she would have told Yoh to book a later flight, but they had always spent this day together and it would be hard on him to break the tradition.

Or would it be hard on her?

"What did you send?" Her husband asked, breaking the silence.

Anna tightened her grip on the wheel and peered over at him. He had a relaxed smile. His eyes were full of love when he looked at her. She took a breath and turned away.

"Money."

Yoh laughed, causing Anna to blush with embarrassment and irritation.

"Again?" he said. "He probably thinks we're the most uncreative people ever."

"Well," Anna said, slightly agitated. "He knows what he wants better than I do. I also added some money to his savings account."

Yoh beamed.

"That's Anna, always preparing for the future."

Something about the way he said that made her smile. She reached down and turned on the radio. BOB filled the car, and the couple sped down road.

They pulled up to a small apartment complex and got out of the car. Yoh pulled out his duffle and looked up at the building.

"No place like home," He sighed.

Anna flipped on the lights and entered the apartment. It was a small one bedroom with A separate kitchen and living room. The living room was fairly sparse outside of a few pieces of furniture and the TV. In the center was a small round table surrounded by cushions.

Yoh tossed his duffle onto the floor and took a seat at the table. Anna wandered back into the kitchen. She opened up the refrigerator and pulled out a box. She placed it on the counter and turned on the oven. Then she wandered into the bedroom.

On the floor, on top of their bed roll, was a red leather bound book. She picked it up and felt along its edges. Then she flipped open the first page to reveal a picture of herself holding a sleeping light haired baby.

Anna remembered that day so vividly. It was ten years ago; Anna and Yoh were both only sixteen years old. She could almost still smell the baby boy's scent. It wasn't pleasant, but it was the scent of her child. She had been so happy then.

A warm arm wrapped around her and pulled her close. Her breath caught and she lifted a hand to touch her husband's.

"You were beautiful that day," he whispered.

Anna shrugged and flipped to the next page, which had a picture of a younger Yoh holding the baby with a sheepish grin on his face.

"He was beautiful," she admitted. "You were completely incompetent."

Yoh chuckled.

"Maybe so."

Anna suddenly felt as if her heart was sinking into her stomach. She felt cold, despite the warmth of her husband against her. She could feel her eyes and cheeks beginning to burn.

"Should I get dinner ready?" Yoh asked softly.

"No I'll do it," She replied. "After all it is that day."

Yoh spun her around to face him and kissed her on the forehead.

"Which is exactly why I should do it," he said.

Then he turned away and headed back to the kitchen.

Anna sat down on their bed and shut the book quickly, causing a photograph to shoot out from between the pages. It fluttered to the ground a couple of inches away, face down. She slowly picked it up and looked at it. Tears trickled down her cheeks.

In the center of the photograph was a sandy haired baby covered in green icing giggling. In front of him were the remains of a cake. On one side of him was Yoh, grinning and holding up a peace sign, and on the other side was Anna. There was green icing on her cheek and nose where she was nuzzling the baby's face. And she was smiling.

Anna clutched the picture to her chest and wept.

An hour later Yoh roused her from her crying with a kiss and a hug and brought her out to dinner. They ate in silence as they did every year. When they finished Anna glanced up at her husband.

"Yoh" she whispered, trying to keep her voice from trembling,

He looked up at her in surprise, but his expression quickly changed back to his usual calm one.

"Yes?"

She averted her gaze and took a steadying breath.

"I do regret it."

She wiped her eyes and stood up. She went to the freezer and took out another box. She placed it on table. Yoh opened it and smiled. Inside the box were two pieces of chocolate cake with green icing.

"This is always my favorite part of this day," he said, taking Anna's hand.

The tears ran down her cheeks and she smiled.

"Happy Birthday Hana," she whispered.

And then they ate in silence.


	2. At the Edge of Almost Certain Night

There are some things in this world only a woman can say, and there are others that can only be said by a man. On this particular evening, as the sun set on the red horizon, such words were said.

Yoh Asakura stood across from her, the love of his life and future bride. The wind blew through his loose auburn hair. The pink hues of the sun reflected on their faces. There was a moment of silence between the two.

Anna stood across from him, the love of her life and future husband. The wind blew through her short sandy hair and red bandana. There was a thought on the tip of her tongue. Up to this point, Yoh had given up his aspirations of becoming Shaman King for the sake of his friends, and Anna knew that she could not say what she had to say until she was sure he was happy with his decision. However, now Yoh was saying he would compete again.

The young man slowly approached the young woman.

"Picking up my Oracle Bell really did me a favor," he said softly. His eyes were their usual calm, but now with a hint of what Anna knew was love. "I need to thank you Anna."

His guardian ghost who was lingering not too far off turned away bashfully, leaving the young couple some privacy.

Yoh ran his fingers through Anna's silky hair. Then he caressed her cheek and kissed her. Anna could feel her usually cold heart melt into a fountain of butterflies. Something inside of her raced at a million miles per hour, making her smile. The young man pulled away and looked at her curiously, and at that moment, what Anna had been dying to say slipped out.

"I'm late."

Yoh stared at her, first in shock but then in confusion.

"What?" he asked, laughing uncomfortably. "Late for what Anna?"

The young woman stared back at him. The look on her face clearly revealing her opinion on his intelligence level, though she knew some of it could be denial. She straightened up and steadied her gaze.

"Don't be dumb Yoh…" She said crossing her arms in front of her chest, which, Yoh suddenly noticed, was slightly bigger than he remembered.

"So you're…" Yoh drew out the statement, his mind felt too fuzzy to comprehend what exactly was going on. Fortunately Anna helped him by giving a slow nod. He rubbed the back of his neck and smiled. "Wow."

Something about the uncertainty in his voice made Anna feel even less sure about the situation. The two of them had spent a lot of time together during the breaks in the Shaman Fights, and she knew that some day she would have to bear an heir for the Asakura family, but she never expected to get pregnant before they were actually married. Perhaps that was proof of how naïve she was, of the fact that she was just barely more than a child herself, which made her even more nervous about the fact that she was going to bring life into the world.

But, as she looked into Yoh's eyes, she could see the blessing that they had been given. What if Yoh… She didn't want to think about it, but the reality was that Hao would be an opponent more difficult than they could imagine. There was the possibility that Yoh would not return.

Amidamaru watched them from a distance, from the look on his face it was clear that he had overheard their discussion. Anna glanced in his direction coolly.

"Come over here," she ordered. The samurai spirit hesitated. "I'm not going to hurt you."

He sighed and approached, avoiding Anna's gaze. He looked at Yoh, who was taking visibly deep breaths. Then he bowed his head in front of the two.

"Congratulations," he said formally.

"You must not tell anyone what you've heard," Anna stated. There was barely any sense of expression on her face.

Amidamaru blinked up at her. "What about your friends?" he asked, turning to Yoh, who was staring off into the distance. Yoh turned to him, and gave a solemn smile.

"They don't have any reason to know," the young man said.

The spirit clearly looked nervous about Yoh's unusual air, but he nodded. The samurai should understand the possible importance of silence for this subject.

"Why don't you go check up on everybody," Yoh added giving his friend a smile.

Anna squinted at her fiancé, trying to understand why he was sending the spirit away in such a strange way. She was certain that Amidamaru could clearly see through that forced smile, but perhaps Yoh meant for it to be seen through.

Amidamaru grinned weakly back and headed off towards their lodging.

Once the ghost was a decent distance away, Yoh's smile faded as turned back towards Anna. Her breath caught in her throat; there was a seriousness in his eyes which could only mean one thing was coming next.

"So what is your plan?" he whispered.

"You're not asking me to leave?" she replied.

A small smile crept across his lips, and Anna could see the tension ease from his gaze. He looked down at the ground and placed his hands in his pockets.

"There wouldn't be a point in that," he said with a natural simplicity that had always awed the young woman. She folded her hands over her stomach, and looked down.

"I will stay by you," she said. "Till this is all over…"

"That isn't what I'm asking about Anna."

Anna glanced back at him. Worry really didn't become Yoh, though Anna couldn't help but smile. Getting a serious emotion out of the laidback teenager was nearly impossible; it was an honor to receive that kind of concern.

"I have the shinigamis," Anna answered calmly after a moment of silence. "But I shouldn't need them. I do not believe Hao wishes for the Asakura bloodline to run dry."

She could see the doubt in the young man's eyes. "He's unpredictable right now. If he finds out and I can't beat him…"

Chemicals and electricity surged through Anna's brain, and her body acted before her mind had time to think about the hand which struck across his warm cheek. Yoh looked at her, shocked, as she wrapped her arms around him.

"I will protect this child," she breathed in his ear. "You just focus on protecting yourself."

Because if this child didn't make it, then perhaps they could try again, but if Yoh didn't make it… that was it. Anna could feel her eyes beginning to sting. She had let herself get carried away with the moment, probably due to hormones.

Yoh returned her embrace pulling her completely against him. Tears ran down her cheeks. Anna's body was reacting to him with an intensity it never had before. Her face was flushing and her chest felt shaky. Yoh chuckled, causing her to pull away far enough to clearly see his grinning face.

"Wow there really isn't a doubt you're knocked up," he laughed.

Anna shoved him away, and placed herself a decent distance from him, arms crossed across her chest. She was blushing, another unusual reaction for her.

"Don't be dumb, Yoh," she muttered.

Then she began making her way back towards the camp, praying that he couldn't see through her fear. He smiled, though he knew that fear, and followed her in silence, as the sun set in the distance, entrapping the world in a cloak of night.


End file.
